#NEWS UPDATE - The Irish Times reports that the body of a retired schoolteacher was recovered from the sea off Castletownbere in West Cork on Friday in the second tragedy the area has seen this week. Sixty-six-year-old Pearse Lyne drowned after his fishing boat capsized in poor weather off the Beara Peninsula. A search operation was launched around 1.30pm after a cliffwalker spotted the upturned vessel near the Dzogchen Buddhist retreat, and the body of the father of four and…

#condolences – Minister Simon Coveney today expressed his deep condolences to the families of Michael Galvin and Noel Dickinson who tragically lost their lives earlier this week. The funeral took place today in the village of Quilty in Co. Clare. Minister Coveney today called to the homes of both men to express his sympathy with their families on his own and on the Government's behalf. "This has been a particularly tragic week at sea for Co. Clare and for Co.…

#BOAT THEFT - A boat owned by the Garda Sub-Aqua Club worth €25,000 was last week stolen in broad daylight, as the Evening Herald reports. Smooth criminals removed the Tornado RIB from its mooring at Coal Harbour in Dun Laoghaire and loaded onto a trailer on Friday afternoon. The "brazen" theft went unnoticed till gardaí arrived at the mooring later that evening. The top-of-the-range boat, used by the sub-aqua club for diving training, is fitted with VHF radios and specialist…

#SEAFOOD BUSINESS - Galway Bay Seafood's ready-to-eat seafood range has received a boost with a number of its products getting gold stars in the UK's Great Taste awards. The Galway Independent reports that the Galway-based fishmongers' barbecued salmon, barbecued and peppered smoked mackerel were awarded one gold star each, while smoked mackerel received the honour of two gold stars. The locally produced fish will now carry the coveted Great Taste 2012 logo, described by proprietor Noel Holland as a "fantastic…

#NORWAY DROWNING - An Irishman has died in a kayaking accident in Norway, as The Irish Times reports. UCC student and keen kayaker Colm Johnson, from Bandon in Co Cork, was paddling with four Irish friends on the "popular but challenging" Sjoa river in central Norway on Monday when he got into difficuly going over six-metre drop. The rest of the group threw ropes from the shore to where the 25-year-old went under the surface but were unable to rescue…

#LOUGH DERG - RTÉ News reports that the body of a man in his 40s was recovered from Lough Derg on Friday night. As previously reported on Afloat.ie, the Lough Derg RNLI lifeboat was launched to investigate an upturned speedboat in Youghal Bay near Garrykennedy on Thursday evening. The 20ft vessel was said to have extensive damage to the outdrive and propellers, consistent with damage sustained while running. The Killaloe unit of the Irish Coast Guard immediately launched a search…

#MARINE RESOURCES - The Irish Times reports on ambitious plans to double the turnover generated by the ocean economy as announced by the Taoiseach yesterday. The new 'ocean wealth roadmap' is specifically geared towards exploiting the potential for 'blue growth', which is also the focus of the EU Strategy for the Atlantic to be discussed at the first Altantic Forum in September. Ireland currently generates 1.2& of its GDP from the marine sector, compared to 4.2% in the UK and…